The Best Fudgy Cocoa Brownies (Easy Homemade Recipe)
Looking for the best fudgy cocoa brownies recipe? Try my easy one bowl brownies with cocoa powder! They’re made from scratch for delicious homemade brownies with a fudgy middle, crackly top, chewy edges, and a rich chocolate flavor that’s way better than boxed brownies.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30-34 minutes
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 15-20 slices 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven, Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup neutral-flavored oil
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1/4 cup milk or water
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp instant espresso powder (optional but recommended for boosting chocolate flavor)
- 1 cup milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips (or half of each)
Instructions
- First preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and combine granulated sugar, light brown sugar, oil, and milk in a large mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth and combined.
- Next add in your eggs, sea salt, vanilla extract, and espresso powder, and whisk until combined.
- Using a sifter, sift in Dutch process cocoa powder and whisk until incorporated. Next, sift in all-purpose flour and use a spatula to gently fold until nearly combined. Do not overmix.
- While a small amount of flour remains showing, add in chocolate chips and fold until just combined. You can use either milk chocolate or semi-sweet, or a combination of both which is what I did.
- Next, lightly spray the bottom of a 9×13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and line with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. If needed, you can overlap two pieces of parchment paper which will make it easier to remove your brownies later for cutting.
- Pour the brownie batter in the parchment paper lined pan and use a spatula to spread evenly into all corners.
- Bake in the oven for 30-34 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the brownies shows only a few moist crumbs.
- Remove the brownies from the oven and let cool on a wire cooling rack for 1-2 hours.
- Once cooled, remove the brownies from the pan by lifting out the parchment paper, and use a non-stick knife or plastic knife to cut your brownies into even slices.
- Serve and enjoy! If desired, feel free to add a scoop of ice cream on top for an ultra indulgent treat.
Notes
Different Pan Size:
To make brownies in an 8×8 baking pan or a 9×9 baking pan, simply cut the all of the ingredients in half and adjust the baking time to 24-30 minutes.
Storage, Freezing, and Re-heating Instructions:
To Store: Allow the brownies to cool completely before cutting and storing in an airtight container at room temperature.
These brownies will remain fresh for up to 5 days, and are even better the day after baking them.
To Freeze: Let brownies cool completely, slice, and wrap individual brownies in plastic wrap before placing in a freezer safe Ziploc bag or container. Cocoa brownies can be frozen up to 3 months.
Once ready to eat, place frozen brownie in the microwave and heat for 15-30 seconds, until warm.
To Re-Heat: These brownies are delicious served at room temperature, but I personally love to re-heat slices in the microwave to make them slightly warm and gooey.
To reheat, I recommend placing in the microwave and heating for 15-20 seconds or until warm.
Find it online: https://www.kindlyunspoken.com/best-fudgy-cocoa-brownies/